DUKE ELLINGTON: Money Jungle (CD)

24 July 2018

We are told:

There are a number of reasons why ‘Money Jungle’ is considered a unique jazz recording. First of all, the album stands out for its superb musical quality. It also marks a very rare trio session in the otherwise prolific discography of Duke Ellington. The album is best known, however, for being Duke’s only true recorded collaboration with two much younger jazz geniuses: Charles Mingus and Max Roach.

‘Money Jungle’ reworks three older compositions: ‘Warm Valley’, first recorded in 1940, ‘Caravan’ (1936) and ‘Solitude’ (1934) - for the latter two the label have added orchestral studio versions by Ellington as a bonus. However, Duke wrote the bulk of the material specifically for the album.

Among these new compositions, only ‘Fleurette Africaine’ (also known as ‘Les Fleurs Africaines’ and ‘African Flower’) would enter Ellington’s concert repertoire (usually performed as an unaccompanied piano piece). None of the other selections would be recorded again by Duke following the ‘Money Jungle’ date.

Epilogue

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